Saturday 29 September

We are still on our way to Borneo. We left the island of Kangea early this 
morning and we will proceed straight to Kumai rather than stop tomorrow at 
Bawean. This should get us in on the morning of October 1st. in time for our 
tour of the Orang Utan park on the 3rd and 4th. There has been no wind today and 
we are motoring at at just over 6.0 kts. in calm seas. There is an almost full 
moon tonight and it's almost like daylight. Too bad we don't have 15kts of 
breeze on the beam and then it would be just about perfect.
Current position is 6 04.39S, 114 18.74E. Course is 311 degrees M. Wind light 
and variable Seas calm.

Friday 28 September

We left Bali yesterday after spending 9 days doing the tourist thing and getting 
the boat spiffed up. I had written a long blog entry  and we have lots of photos 
but did not get a chance to upload all of them. We are on our way to the wilds 
of Borneo to see the Orang Utangs, allegedly in their natural habitat. We shall 
see. It will involve a two day jungle trip up the river in a local tour boat in 
Kalimantan to see the creatures.
We are currently at the island of Kangea about 120 miles north of Benoa, Bali 
and we will go to Bawean island tomorrow for an overnight stop before we get to 
Borneo in time for our trip.

Marriott Hotel, Nusa Dua, Bali September 25 th. 2012

We have been ensconced at the Bali Marriott Hotel in Nusa Dua in the south of 
Bali fot a few days of ridiculously long, hot showers, air conditioning and high 
speed internet.. We arrived at Bali Marina on September 18th and have been 
living the high life. The marina itself is a bit dilapidated and the water is 
dirty but it is safe and secure and a good place to leave the boat for a few 
days while we do our tour of Bali. Not only that, they have all manner of boat 
cleaning services that were extremely inexpensive so instead of cleaning the 
boat ourselves we got someone else to do it for a welcome change.
We rented a minivan with David and Marian from Kilkea II for $25 a day and have 
put it to good use. Driving is a bit hairy here as traffic regulations are 
merely suggestions rather than rule of law. Especially the thousands of scooters 
and small motor bikes that swarm around like bees and will occupy every square 
foot of road surface if you let them.
On our first day out, we had our first Bali shakedown. We were driving along a 
busy street and passed a police checkpoint where they were stopping vehicles 
randomly. A police officer came to the window and asked for my drivers license. 
I gave him my license from the great state of Idaho and he became very irate and 
demanded to see my international drivers license. When I told him I didn't have 
one he took my Idaho license away and walked 50 metres down the road where 
no-one was watching. It took a little while to figure out what was going on but 
all he wanted was a small backhander and the problem would go away. I slipped 
him 50,000 rupiah about $5 and he all smiles and gave me my license back.
On we went and spent a pleasant day visiting Ubud. The main street was full of 
tourist shops and the ubiquitous temples, at least one on every corner, in 
various stages of disrepair. Once off the main drag, within a block or two were 
many tiny shops and restaurants and family owned hotels overlooking the rice 
paddy fields that were quite spectacular.Much more like the Bali we expected.
On the following day we went to the huge Hindu temple on the cliffs of Uluwatu 
and watched a traditional Kecak dance and play while the sun set over the Java 
Sea to the west. The play was pretty incomprehensible and the seats were very 
hard on my boney bottom  but quite interesting.There were no musical instruments 
and a the music was made by 70 dudes who make all sorts of clacking sounds and 
sang single notes instead of instruments. The costumes and masks were also 
pretty amazing.
We spent the next day on the beach and the admiral had some pampering in the 
spa. The three Days at the Marriott passed very quickly and we went back to the 
marina to find a nice, clean boat with the stainless steel polished with a 
toothbrush and the topsides all buffed out for the first time since New Zealand.
We took a drive to Lovina Beach on the north side of the island, through the 
rain forest and lakes and 12,000 foot extinct volcano in the center of the 
island. The return journey took us along the east of Bali on the coastal road 
and back to the marina.
Provisioning at the Carrefour supermarket on the next day and we were ready to 
leave after a little delay for fueling and waiting for our passports to be 
returned after a visa extension.
We left Bali Marina on the 27th of September for Java on a beautiful clear day. 
We motored up the same coast we drove along a few days before only in the 
opposite direction keeping 100 metres off the beach to avoid the very strong 
south setting currents between the island of Bali and Lombok.
We still have lots of photos to post. If the there is an internet connection in 
Kumai, our next stop, it will happen then.

photos

photos

Village in Lembogan on our scooter ride

Temple on Lombok

getting kitted out in Hindu gear to enter yet another temple

natives farming seaweed on Lembogan

Ubud on Bali

Craftsman placing mother of pearl inlays by hand. Lombok

Tea house interlude on our tour of Lombok

Vacation in Bali

We are taking a holiday from 'Callisto'by spending a few days in a Marriott in Nusa Dua, Bali. I have taken advantage of the gym and the spa,and feeling really civilized. We are enjoying Long showers ,king size bed ,room service ,and air conditioning...bliss. As far as  food in Bali the vegetarian options are very good,usually it is gado gado for me also fruit and vegetables are plentiful. After the remote islands in Indonesia Bali is a bit of a culture shock ,so very busy, people everywhere,especially on scooters and motor cycles,in fact at a red light it is like being centered amongst a swarm of bees!. In fact a hair raising experience driving around , also its a free for all when it comes to traffic signals etc.No one takes much notice.😱 Bali in contrast to eastern Indonesia is filled with Hindu temples, every home ,shop, hotel seems to have their offerings displayed at the entrance and a small compound house even  has its own temple. Bright yellow, red ,white materials drape carved and clay figures,or cover the umbrellas .Elaborate palm hangings drape the house entarances and line the streets,Little woven baskets containing flowers , rice or maybe an egg plus some incense sticks are placed close by. This island is full of art and culture when it comes to dance ,puppetry / theatre. There are many artisans hand carving wood, placing pearl shell intricately into furniture, basket weaving ,pottery and  ikat weaving. Ikat, is the traditional hand spun cotton ,dyed and woven on a wooden loom. The fine threads with intricate designs and different colors show which area in Indonesia they are from,as you can see in the photos they are worn by men and women usually as a skirt .  We have a few more days to tour around before we set off for Borneo.

Lembongan

We are now in Lembongan and have been on mooring for the past three days. It has been nice and calm here so far, just a little roll at high tide and this mooring seems secure. At least four boats dragged their mooring on Gili Air in the 30 kt. winds we had there. One hit the reef and another collided with another boat. We were fortunate and had no problem but could not really leave the boat for fear that it wouldn't be in the same place when we got back.

Lembongan is only about 15 miles from Bali and we allegedly have a berth there as of tomorrow. There are many resorts and tourists on this island and this is a taste of what we will see once we get to Bali. We did a tour of the island yesterday on a motorbike, another first for the Admiral. Not much of a motorbike and the rear brakes were almost non existent. I don't suppose you can expect much else for 7dollars a day including gasoline.

We did survive the horrible roads and a very narrow bridge to the neighboring island and we were able to see a great deal of Lembongan. We had lunch overlooking Secret Point, which is a surfer hangout with great views.

The majority religion here is Hindu as most of the people are Balinese and there is a temple on every block sometimes in every house.

Lots of photos to follow.

Scooter Grandpa

photos

Photos

the beach at Gili Air

The Admiral learning how to weave

The Admiral doing traditional dancing

Sunset on Gili Air. The mountains of Bali to the west

Gili Air, Lombok, Indonesia

We left the north east corner of Lombok a few days ago after spending the night in the protected waters in the strait between Lombok and Gili Lawang tucked in behind the reef. We went on to Medana Bay where there is a marina of sorts. It didn't look too safe so we anchored out and went ashore to explore the facilities. There was a bar with the usual Bitang beer available and a small restaurant. on the following day we took a walk on the beach and discoved the Oberoi Resort Hotel, a  world class hotel, in the company of Dave and Marion from Kilkea II.
We had tea in beautiful surroundings with great service instead of the usual drinks and very enjoyable it was too.
That evening, the marina laid on a buffet and some local dancing for entertainment. Photos to follow.
A considerable roll began in the anchorage that night so we moved to our current spot, Gili Air, a party island a few miles from Lombok.
We found a mooring and did a quick tour of the island , mainly bars and backpacker eateries but a very pretty spot.
Yesterday, we had a long day which began with a boat ride to the mainland and then a  tour of Lombok in air conditioned comfort for a change with a driver and a guide. We visited various Bhuddist, Hindu and ecumenical temples and also  villages that made furniture, ikan and songket weaving and pottery. There were some very skilled artisans making some outstanding products using hand tools only.
We planned on snorkelling on the reefs here today but the breeze came up to over 35 kts so we stayed on the boat. Just as well we did as more than one boat here dragged on their  moorings this afternoon. Much excitement before getting everything sorted. It's still blowing tonight but hopefully it will settle by tomorrow and we can do some stuff ashore and on the reef.
Not long to Bali now.
Lots of photos to be edited and added,maybe tomorrow.

photos

Gili Lawa Laut on Komodo Island. Great water clarity and diving

Cigarette lighters on the beach Indonesian fishermen's navigation lights



The internet cafe on Gili Lawa. We had to climb up to the ridge to get a 3G connection

the entrance to the Komodo Dragon Reserve




sunset at the Atlantis restaurant at Labuan Badjo

 

Motorcycle momma in Mausambi



There be dragons

Komodo dragon (really just a big lizard) on the move on Rinca Island

Lombok Island, Indonesia

We left Labuan Bajo, otherwise known as LBJ on the morning of   August 31st. For the island of Rinca the home of the famous Komodo Dragons. We anchored up in a very sheltered bay next to the ranger station. There was lots of wild life in the bay with fish jumping all over the place and Capuchin monkeys swinging from the mangroves and eating crabs on the beach. David and Marion from Killkea II and the two of us went ashore the following morning to see the creatures. We had a very good guide called Kuba who spoke English and he took us for a tour  of the reserve. We saw many Komodos of various sizes from large, aggressive looking males to one year old babies and all in between. We also saw a water buffalo but none of the wild pigs and horses that also inhabit the island. We then went on to Gili Lawa Laut on the north side of Komodo Island. This was a spectacular bay with crystal clear water to twenty meters plus. We spent a few days on the beach and diving on the many superb reefs surrounding the bay. The Admiral has become quite brave with her snorkeling and even did a drift dive through one of the passes. We saw lots of fish and coral while sliding along with the current at about four knots. We would have stayed longer in this idyllic  spot but a big swell came up from the north which made for an uncomfortable roll so we left for the island of Gili Banta where we spent the night on comfort and shelter. On the following day, we again went westward to the island of Lombok, which has volcanoes, resorts and other attractions. We covered the 180 miles overnight with quite a lot of breeze and stopped for the night in the NE corner of Lombok at a place called Gila Lawang. A bit tricky to get into but very quiet behind the reef once in. We left this morning in 15 knots of breeze looking for a nice sail to the west side of Lombok but the wind has died and we are motoring slowly against the tide. Oh well, it's all good in paradise! Photos soon once we get to Lombok.